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About Jay Cutts
Expertise
Preparation for LSAT, GRE, MCAT, GMAT. Personal statements, letters of recommendation, graduate application process, practice tests.
No Questions about Undergrad Admissions Please (unless you are planning to go to law, business, medical or grad school eventually).
Note that I change private questions to public so they are available to others. If you have something that is truly private, let me know.
Experience
Over 18 years full time graduate entrance exam prep with over 1500 students nationally and internationally.
Education/Credentials
BA, Linguistics with Honors and Distinction, University of Michigan
MA, Special Education with an Emphasis in Learning Disabilities and Giftedness, with Honors, University of New Mexico
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You are here: Experts > Education > Graduate School > Help with College & Grad School Applications > PCAT and Pharmacy School
Expert: Jay Cutts - 10/26/2009
Question
I did not score how I wanted on my PCAT and am scheduled to retake it in January. I need some advice on the best program I should take in order to significantly increase my score. Thanks!
Answer
Hi, Stacy.
I work with the PCAT myself so I can give you some suggestions that should help.
You didn't say how you scored on the specific sections of the test. If you had trouble on the science sections, there are two possible factors. The first is that you may be missing some of the science knowledge that's required. The second factor has to do with the strategies that you use on the test.
Let's talk about strategy first. Often people will get a problem wrong even though they knew the science. This is usually because the problem requires organizing complex information and you didn't have good strategies for doing that. It may feel like you just made "a dumb mistake" but in fact there was something complex there that threw you off or made you get lost. Another reasons for this kind of error is that you are rushing through questions, because you have an unrealistic strategy for using your time - or maybe have no real strategy at all.
The remedy for wrong answers caused by poor timing or problem solving strategy is to learn new strategies and become good at them. Unfortunately, most commercial PCAT prep programs don't teach this kind of strategy because the instructors usually don't have a lot of experience. They are usually people who have done well at the test themselves but are not test prep specialists.
If you are simply missing science knowledge, it is relatively simple to study that on your own. There are more MCAT prep materials than PCAT materials but the science content is similar (except that the MCAT requires physics), so a good MCAT review guide that you can buy in the bookstore or online should be all you need, along with a little self-discipline and as many months and hours of review as possible.
If you are having trouble with the verbal and reading comp parts of the test, this is also usually a matter of strategy. The typical problem is that you can get down to two possible answers but then usually choose the wrong one. It's very frustrating because often you have a good defense for your answer and it starts to seem like their answer is almost arbitrary.
In fact there is a specific clear reason why their answer is right and the other answer is dead wrong. You need to learn what makes an answer dead wrong and you need to learn tools for working two answers against each other. There are actually hundreds of patterns of how they create wrong answers, so you have to work with lots of questions to really master the test. Most people need to learn these strategies and master them with a highly qualified test prep specialist. Again, in most commercial PCAT prep programs, the instructor doesn't have the experience to understand these strategies.
If you are having trouble with the math, it may be that you have to review some basic math facts, but those are usually pretty easy to review. What beats most people is that they make the questions very complex, so that even if you know the basic facts, you still can't get the answer. I personally teach people a wide range of very simple, very intuitive strategies for organizing complex math information, so that you can solve even the most complex problems. Even people who are not particularly math can learn these strategies and use them well, with a little bit of instruction and guidance.
Commercial PCAT prep programs don't typically teach these strategies. They usually teach you the standard math facts, which for most people are not enough to be able to solve the complex PCAT math problems.
I hope this gives you an idea of what you are facing. I should be clear that I have a vested interest in discussing PCAT prep options because I teach PCAT prep myself. However, what I've said about the commercial programs is still, I believe, accurate. Their instructors are typically people who have done well on the test but have very little experience teaching the test or analyzing it. Because of this they don't have skills in teaching the strategies that I've described. These strategies are what really help most students.
A commercial prep program can be fine for science review alone. I'm not sure it's worth over a thousand dollars just to have someone walk you through science review, when you could organize that yourself.
Outside of my home state of New Mexico, I teach solely the strategy aspect of the PCAT. I do help my students organize their science review for themselves and help them create a study structure for themselves. I also help them find outside help if they need someone to explain some science to them. So many of my students find they don't need a commercial PCAT program and can make all of the progress they need by working with me on strategy, while getting some guidance from me on their self-study of science.
This ends up being much more affordable, as well as more effective.
Sorry for the "commercial" but you asked about what the best help would be and I have purposely created a program that has a lot higher quality than the commercial mass market PCAT prep programs.
If you would like more information, please feel free to contact me directly at 800-353-4898, day or evening. I will glad to also help you compare prep options that you may have.
Regards,
Jay Cutts
Cutts Graduate Reviews
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